A Russian government committee has approved the construction of a new Moscow-St. Petersburg highway passing through Khimki Forest.
The Khimki Forest Controversy
![Khimki forest defenders at their camp on the site of the felling on July 15.](https://gdb.rferl.org/5ce05bf3-e4b3-47b2-ac3e-38bd5b674b88_w1024_q10_s.jpg)
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Khimki forest defenders at their camp on the site of the felling on July 15.
![Russian police detain a Khimki activist for attempting to reach the site of the deforestation on August 2.](https://gdb.rferl.org/45d375c1-96b0-438a-98c4-400373361e7f_w1024_q10_s.jpg)
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Russian police detain a Khimki activist for attempting to reach the site of the deforestation on August 2.
![Surrounded by police officers, activist gather to protest against the destruction of the Khimki Forest on August 2.](https://gdb.rferl.org/76e356bf-371e-40e5-aefc-131610d265a0_w1024_q10_s.jpg)
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Surrounded by police officers, activist gather to protest against the destruction of the Khimki Forest on August 2.
![Russian rock singer Yuri Shevchuk attended a rally on Pushkin Square in Moscow on August 22 to protest the Khimki highway plan.](https://gdb.rferl.org/b87f767f-f3a5-4362-9e16-ffe8ab732b58_w1024_q10_s.jpg)
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Russian rock singer Yuri Shevchuk attended a rally on Pushkin Square in Moscow on August 22 to protest the Khimki highway plan.
![Some 2,000 people crammed into the square amid a heavy police presence.](https://gdb.rferl.org/a05b5f64-45be-4ef4-8cba-75de9aebfe1a_w1024_q10_s.jpg)
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Some 2,000 people crammed into the square amid a heavy police presence.
![Noted human rights activist Ludmila Alekseeva was also in attendance.](https://gdb.rferl.org/b2ed3ff8-f670-4f63-9b95-ce44b91d02b3_w1024_q10_s.jpg)
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Noted human rights activist Ludmila Alekseeva was also in attendance.
![An idle tractor sits amidst felled trees on the site of the planned highway on August 27. Russian President Dmitry Medvedev had ordered a halt to construction.](https://gdb.rferl.org/2fe73148-c989-4908-adf0-5c95f16a5a1c_w1024_q10_s.jpg)
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An idle tractor sits amidst felled trees on the site of the planned highway on August 27. Russian President Dmitry Medvedev had ordered a halt to construction.
![A policeman guards the site of the planned highway in late August.](https://gdb.rferl.org/c82136bb-cf6b-4733-9037-3bacf37eeef9_w1024_q10_s.jpg)
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A policeman guards the site of the planned highway in late August.
![Activist Yevgenia Chirikova in the Khimki forest on August 30. She heads EcoDefense, the ecological group spearheading the Khimki protests.](https://gdb.rferl.org/4fe03a42-817f-4f2d-bae5-d4cad76c9e10_w1024_q10_s.jpg)
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Activist Yevgenia Chirikova in the Khimki forest on August 30. She heads EcoDefense, the ecological group spearheading the Khimki protests.
![Mikhail Beketov was editor in chief of a local Khimki newspaper and had written extensively about the controversy. He was savagely beaten outside his home in 2008.](https://gdb.rferl.org/78404447-b247-4690-93b5-7e73bb675d05_w1024_q10_s.jpg)
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Mikhail Beketov was editor in chief of a local Khimki newspaper and had written extensively about the controversy. He was savagely beaten outside his home in 2008.
![Oleg Kashin, a correspondent for "Kommersant," was attacked outside his Moscow home on November 6. The attack left him with broken legs and skull damage.](https://gdb.rferl.org/8e0942ed-5c2d-4856-a4bb-1f023fe4edc3_w1024_q10_s.jpg)
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Oleg Kashin, a correspondent for "Kommersant," was attacked outside his Moscow home on November 6. The attack left him with broken legs and skull damage.
![Khimki activist Konstantin Fetisov remains in a coma after being attacked by unknown assailants on November 4.](https://gdb.rferl.org/7ecc6888-e847-4d98-a974-88f561f89005_w1024_q10_s.jpg)
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Khimki activist Konstantin Fetisov remains in a coma after being attacked by unknown assailants on November 4.